State plans regular green-cracker production training

Kolkata: The MSME department is planning to hold regular training sessions on green cracker manufacturing to ensure safe and sustainable livelihoods for the nearly 1.5 lakh people in Bengal associated with the industry.

“There are several cracker manufacturing hubs across the state and if we can conduct regular green-cracker training in these places, it will help provide a safe and sustainable livelihood. This is the state government’s responsibility and we are committed to it,” a senior MSME official said while inaugurating a two-day training programme for 160 manufacturers at Maheshtala on Thursday.

The hands-on training, to be conducted by scientists from the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI), Nagpur, was scheduled to begin on Thursday but has been postponed to December 8 and 9. The trainers could not reach Kolkata following the cancellation of over 300 Indigo flights due to technical issues, weather disruptions and new crew-rostering rules. The MSME department has been conducting such district-level training since last year, and this will be the first session of the current fiscal.

Sukdev Naskar, general secretary of the All Bengal Trinamool Green Firecracker Manufacturing Workers’ Union (ABTGFMWU), urged MSME officials, including Joint Director Partha Chowdhury, to address the difficulties faced by manufacturers in securing green-cracker licences after completing NEERI training. Of the 253 individuals already trained, only 40 have received licences. “In districts like East Midnapore, West Midnapore, Bankura and East Burdwan, manufacturing licences have eluded businessmen even after completing the required training,” Naskar said.

The state has also begun developing designated clusters where cracker-manufacturing units can be relocated, in line with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s instructions.